The key of E minor has one sharp. For reference, here are the notes in the E minor scale:
- E
- F Sharp
- G
- A
- B
- C
- D
All the chords in the key of E minor are made up of these seven notes, and each note gets to be the root note for one of the chords, thus making seven triad chords in this key.
- E Minor
- F Sharp Diminished
- G Major
- A Minor
- B Minor
- C Major
- D Major
Note: In this article I’m using banjo chord charts that I created using Microsoft Paint. Here are all the banjo chord charts that are free to use personally and commercially under Creative Commons Attribution (CC-BY) 4.0 License.
i Chord — E Minor or E Minor Seventh
The first chord (i) in the key of E minor is the E minor chord. Below is my preferred way to play the E minor chord on banjo.
The E minor seventh chord is the corresponding 7th chord for the i chord in the key of E minor. Below is my favorite way to play the E minor seventh chord.
iidim Chord — F Sharp Diminished or F Sharp Minor Seventh Flat Five
The second chord (iidim) in the key of E minor is the F sharp diminished chord. Below is my preferred way to play the F sharp diminished chord on banjo.
The F sharp minor seventh flat five chord is the corresponding 7th chord for the iidim chord in the key of E minor. Below is my favorite way to play the F sharp minor seventh flat five chord.
III Chord — G Major or G Major Seventh
The third chord (III) in the key of E minor is the G major chord. Below is my preferred way to play the G major chord on banjo.
The G major seventh chord is the corresponding 7th chord for the III chord in the key of E minor. Below is my favorite way to play the G major seventh chord.
iv Chord — A Minor or A Minor Seventh
The fourth chord (iv) in the key of E minor is the A minor chord. Below is my preferred way to play the A minor chord on banjo.
The A minor seventh chord is the corresponding 7th chord for the iv chord in the key of E minor. Below is my favorite way to play the A minor seventh chord.
v Chord — B Minor or B Minor Seventh
The fifth chord (v) in the key of E minor is the B minor chord. Below is my preferred way to play the B minor chord on banjo.
The B minor seventh chord is the corresponding 7th chord for the v chord in the key of E minor. Below is my favorite way to play the B minor seventh chord.
VI Chord — C Major or C Major Seventh
The sixth chord (VI) in the key of E minor is the C major chord. Below is my preferred way to play the C major chord on banjo.
The C major seventh chord is the corresponding 7th chord for the VI chord in the key of E minor. Below is my favorite way to play the C major seventh chord.
VII Chord — D Major or D Dominant Seventh
The seventh chord (VII) in the key of E minor is the D major chord. Below is my preferred way to play the D major chord on banjo.
The D dominant seventh chord is the corresponding 7th chord for the VII chord in the key of E minor. Below is my favorite way to play the D dominant seventh chord.
Chord Progressions in the Key of E Minor
Here are 10 chord progressions in the key of E Minor that you can experiment with. I have included banjo tablature to make playing the chords easier for you.
1. E Minor, A Minor, B Minor
D| --9---9-----2---2-----4---4---
B| --8---8-----1---1-----3---3---
G| --9---9-----2---2-----4---4---
D| --9---9-----2---2-----4---4---
G| ------------------------------
2. E Minor, A Minor, C Major, B Minor
D| --9---9-----2---2-----5---5-----4---4---
B| --8---8-----1---1-----5---5-----3---3---
G| --9---9-----2---2-----5---5-----4---4---
D| --9---9-----2---2-----5---5-----4---4---
G| ----------------------------------------
3. E Minor, C Major, G Major, A Minor
D| --9---9-----5---5-----0---0-----2---2---
B| --8---8-----5---5-----0---0-----1---1---
G| --9---9-----5---5-----0---0-----2---2---
D| --9---9-----5---5-----0---0-----2---2---
G| ----------------------------------------
4. E Minor, D Major, C Major
D| --9---9-----7---7-----5---5---
B| --8---8-----7---7-----5---5---
G| --9---9-----7---7-----5---5---
D| --9---9-----7---7-----5---5---
G| ------------------------------
5. E Minor, A Minor, G Major, C Major
D| --9---9-----2---2-----0---0-----5---5---
B| --8---8-----1---1-----0---0-----5---5---
G| --9---9-----2---2-----0---0-----5---5---
D| --9---9-----2---2-----0---0-----5---5---
G| ----------------------------------------
6. E Minor, F Sharp Diminished, B Minor, E Minor
D| --9---9-----10--10----4---4-----9---9---
B| --8---8-----10--10----3---3-----8---8---
G| --9---9-----11--11----4---4-----9---9---
D| --9---9-----10--10----4---4-----9---9---
G| ----------------------------------------
7. C Major, D Major, E Minor
D| --5---5-----7---7-----9---9---
B| --5---5-----7---7-----8---8---
G| --5---5-----7---7-----9---9---
D| --5---5-----7---7-----9---9---
G| ------------------------------
8. E Minor, C Major, G Major, D Major
D| --9---9-----5---5-----0---0-----7---7---
B| --8---8-----5---5-----0---0-----7---7---
G| --9---9-----5---5-----0---0-----7---7---
D| --9---9-----5---5-----0---0-----7---7---
G| ----------------------------------------
9. E Minor, C Major, E Minor, C Major
D| --9---9-----5---5-----9---9-----5---5---
B| --8---8-----5---5-----8---8-----5---5---
G| --9---9-----5---5-----9---9-----5---5---
D| --9---9-----5---5-----9---9-----5---5---
G| ----------------------------------------
10. E Minor, B Minor, E Minor, A Minor
D| --9---9-----4---4-----9---9-----2---2---
B| --8---8-----3---3-----8---8-----1---1---
G| --9---9-----4---4-----9---9-----2---2---
D| --9---9-----4---4-----9---9-----2---2---
G| ----------------------------------------
11. E Minor, G Major, D Major, E Minor
D| --9---9-----0---0-----7---7-----9---9---
B| --8---8-----0---0-----7---7-----8---8---
G| --9---9-----0---0-----7---7-----9---9---
D| --9---9-----0---0-----7---7-----9---9---
G| ----------------------------------------
12. E Minor, C Major, G Major, A Minor
D| --9---9-----5---5-----0---0-----2---2---
B| --8---8-----5---5-----0---0-----1---1---
G| --9---9-----5---5-----0---0-----2---2---
D| --9---9-----5---5-----0---0-----2---2---
G| ----------------------------------------
